Well, I survived another semester at school this year. Ordinarily that wouldn't be too impressive, but I've undertaken efforts to become a massage therapist--basically so I can finish going to college--which made a significant impact on my personal schedule. Good news, I got A's for all my classes! Bad news, I haven't done a blog post since the beginning of the semester. But it's Christmas, so I really ought to do something, shouldn't I?
This blog may be a little lazy but on the other hand I really feel good about it. I took a course on King Arthur and his knights--also known simply as 'Arthurian legend'--which was really fun; it's interesting to see how drama was written hundreds of years ago and how much they have changed or remained the same. So, this blog entry is my final research paper for that course, it earned an A, so I hope you enjoy it! (It even can 'kind of' counts for the holidays as some legends have Arthur become king on Christmas day, neat huh?)
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The Once and Future King
Kings and knights, lords and ladies, swords and sorcery—artists have used these elements to entertain and excite audiences for centuries, perhaps most frequently in the legends revolving around the famous King Arthur. Whether the subject of the work is Arthur himself, or one of the many characters that surround him, Arthurian romance gives imaginative minds ample material to forge new and exciting creations. Due to the story’s constant reinvention, Arthur, and his kin, have transcended not only cultural lines, but time itself.
Some of the earliest works of Arthurian legend stem back nearly a thousand years. One of the oldest renditions was written in 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his work The History of the Kings of Britain (Geoffrey 9). Geoffrey’s story of Arthur blends history with legend, blurring the line between truth and fantasy. His tale of Arthur plunges the story into a time of turmoil, where Arthur rises as leader, becoming an icon of unity, hope, and victory. He systematically defeats Britain’s enemies, epitomizing his power as he resists the oppression of Rome, inspiring his men that: “Since the Romans propose to remove from us that which is our own, without any doubt at all we on the contrary shall take from them what is theirs,” (Geoffrey 234). The story ends tragically before Arthur can earn Britain true independence as the character ascends to power only to fall by betrayal from one of his own. In the 1190’s, approximately sixty years from Geoffrey’s The History of the Kings of Britain, the stories of Arthur were revisited by French artist Chretien de Troyes in his Arthurian Romances (Chretien 5). Chretien focusing more on the age of Arthur and the adventures of his knights, rather than the recounting of a fabled history. His stories were inspirational as not even thirty years later, Chretien’s work was mirrored and expounded on by artists who changed not only the style of the story, but the medium it was told in. Such as German writer Wolfram Von Eschenbach, whose version of Parzival was a lyrical poem and concluded Chretien’s fabled adventure of the Holy Grail (Wolfram 10-11). Not long after Wolfram’s work on Parzival, Arthurian romance was traveling over the swathe of Europe.
The migration of Arthurian romances can be examined in the works of literature and historian experts in such resources as the essay compilation King Arthur Through the Ages, edited by Valerie Lagorio and Mildred Day. For instance, the writer, Marianne Kalinke, notes that countries’ motives to adopt Arthurian legend were multifaceted, especially in the case of Norway. By 1226, less than two decades from Geoffrey’s Parzival, the northern countries of Norway, Iceland, and Scandinavia, were absorbing Arthurian romance into their artistic circles. Kalinke writes that Norway’s King Hákon may have commissioned the translation of Arthurian romance because he, “presumably wished to ally Norway with other European monarchies not only in political but also literary matters” (Kalinke 127). Whether or not Norway’s decision was primarily political, the inclusion of Arthurian stories provided new and exciting ways to entertain guests. This new entertainment may have contributed to Norway’s Queen Eufemia commissioning the translation of several stories into Swedish as a wedding gift to her daughter who married a Swedish Duke (Kalinke 134). The taste for Arthurian literature had developed in the north, and the work of Chretien and Wolfram were entertaining countries far beyond the writers’ homeland. An especial affinity for love-quests developed, such as the tales of Tristan and Yvain who were rewritten numerous times, and inspired a general story archetype that native writers would use frequently (Kalinke 140-143). The north would receive another wave of Arthurian material after the Reformation (Kalinke 144), by which time, the stories were already well established and influencing the cultures to the south.
Before the age of the Renaissance, Italy had already firmly affixed a strong link to Arthurian legend and romance. The stories were not simply limited to the realms of academia, but were known widely as writer Donald Hoffman notes that: “Sicilian bed-quilts and ceiling paintings reveal a domestic interest in Arthur, and the records of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries attest to a knowledge of Arthur, Gawain, Merlin, and Tristan” (Hoffman 170). Prior to the inventions of some famous writers, such as Sir Thomas Malory, Italy was already culturally steeped into the legends of Arthur, so much so that men would compare their wives to the beauty of the fictional characters (Hoffman 170). Native artists used the stories to influence their own work or even as reference material, including the famous artist Dante, who had a character specifically compare their romantic struggles with Tristan and Iseult’s relationship (Hoffman 171). Writer Robert G. Warnock mentions how even sub-cultures grew excited for the material as the Jewish community became active in the participation Arthurian legend—much to the chagrin of rabbinical leaders—to the point of throwing wedding ceremonies themed after the legends as early as 1286 (Warnock 189-190). Italians were excited and enthralled by Arthur and his court. Local writers were rewriting previous works and inventing new ones, pressing the knowledge and popularity further throughout Italy. By the fifteenth century Europe was well into the Renaissance, Sir Thomas Malory’s rendition of Arthur was in circulation, and Arthur had extended his metaphorical rule down to Naples (Hoffman 172). The cultural enthusiasm that influenced artists continued well past the Renaissance and Arthurian legend only continued to grow, spreading to new audiences as cultures and technology advanced.
Just as Wolfram altered the medium in which he told the story of Arthur, artists utilized the new medium of film to retell the story again in the twentieth century. The use of Arthurian legend in film has been the subject of study for many minds, and responses to their discoveries can be found in essays such as the ones cataloged in Cinema Arthuriana, edited by Kevin J Harty. For nearly as long as cinema has existed, it has had an Arthurian presence as noted by Kevin Harty: “Thomas Edison is responsible for the oldest surviving example of cinema Arthuriana. In 1904, Edison commissioned his principal director and cameraman at the time, Edwin S. Porter, to bring a version of Wagner’s Grail opera, Parsifal, to the screen” (Harty 7). Since Edison’s first commission, numerous stories have been realized, often reinterpreted from the old legends by the writers and directors. These changes are not unlike the changes seen in Norway or in Italy, where writers attempted to make stories more appropriate for their cultures. In his essay, writer David Day speaks on the subject while analyzing Monty Python and the Holy Grail, saying: “Storytellers have been adapting the Arthurian materials to their own purposes since the middle ages—altering the legend to suit their own times and circumstances,” (Harty 133). This altering of material has allowed for more cultures to experiment with and enjoy Arthurian legend, from cultures that extend far beyond the audience of Geoffrey of Monmouth.
The historical person of Arthur may not have existed. Perhaps he was the invention of a creative mind. Perhaps he did exist and the world has perpetuated his legacy for close to a thousand years. In either case, Arthur has crossed countries, cultural boundaries, oceans, even time, in ways that few subjects of ancient literature have. Arthurian legend has spread so far because it was malleable enough that people across the world could find ways to make it meaningful for them. Arthur and his knights have become famous throughout the world as beacons of hope and honor. Over time, they have grown to mean more, they have come to represent what people look for and aspire to. In Geoffrey’s original work, Arthur is taken away before he dies to heal his wounds. Sir Thomas Malory expounded on this, ending Arthur’s role in the story saying that: “Yet some men say in many parts of England that King Arthur is not dead, but had by the will of Our Lord Jesu into another place; and men say that he shall come again, and he shall win the holy cross” (Mallory 519). This line has seen revisions in the many rewrites and reinventions the story has seen, but maybe the prophesy has already been fulfilled. As each time the story is told, as the story remains alive and changing, Arthur has returned; and as long as his story repeats its rebirth, he will return again.
Works Cited:
Chrétien de Troyes. Arthurian Romances. London, England: Penguin, 1991. 5.
Geoffrey, and Lewis Thorpe. The History of the Kings of Britain. London: Penguin, 2004. 9, 234.
Day, David D. “Monty Python and the Holy Grail: Madness with a Definite Method.” Cinema Arthuriana: Twenty Essays, edited by Kevin Harty. Jefferson: McFarland, 2002. 133.
Harty, Kevin J. “Cinema Arthuriana: An Overview.” Cinema Arthuriana: Twenty Essays, edited by Kevin Harty. Jefferson: McFarland, 2002. 133.
Hoffman, Donald L.“The Arthurian Tradition in Italy.” King Arthur through the Ages, edited by Valerie Marie Lagorio and Mildred Leake Day. New York: Garland Pub. 1990. 170-172.
Kalinke, Marianne E. “Arthurian Literature in Scandinavia.” King Arthur through the Ages edited by Valerie Marie Lagorio and Mildred Leake Day. New York: Garland Pub. 1990. 127, 134, 140-144.
Malory, Sir Thomas. Le Morte D'Arthur. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1969. 519.
Warnock, Robert G. “The Arthurian Tradition in Hebrew and Yiddish.” King Arthur through the Ages, edited by Valerie Marie Lagorio and Mildred Leake Day. New York: Garland Pub. 1990. 189-190.
Wolfram Von Eschenbach. Parzival. Harmondsworth, Eng.: Penguin, 1980. 10-11.
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Did you enjoy this post, or did you feel cheated because it's just an essay? I personally enjoyed writing it, and all of my readings on the subject of Arthurian legend--which will definitely be material for future blog posts. How do you feel about Arthurian legend? Is that a subject that you'd like to see come up in future posts? If so, let me know in the comments.
Merry Christmas everyone!
Image Source: http://artoriusrex.blogspot.com/2012/10/merlin-501-2-arthurs-bane.html